Off the bridle by JOHN SCANLON

HE recent heatwave has brought back memories to in your form books or online. What a field, and although me of the long, hot summer of 1976. After Urban Sea has gone down in history as an exceptional T completing the first year of my legal studies in broodmare ( and ), she not an Glasgow I was working as a scoreboard operator at obvious form pick for the Arc itself, and with personal Wimbledon, travelling by tube to and from central London favourites like , and in each day. It was absolutely essential that I bought the the race, I’m even astonished now that I backed her. Evening Standard each day, as I had to check the runners for These, then, are the messages from the racing gods which the following day’s racing (this was in the good old days have convinced me over the years of the crucial importance before 48-hour decs), and in particular to read the going of going conditions to the outcome of horse races. So when reports. ITV Racing’s Brian Gleeson was explaining to viewers just That spring, I had witnessed a sprint handicap at my local how much Alpha Centauri would enjoy the prevailing ground track, Hamilton, which was to have a significant influence on conditions at Royal Ascot in advance of the Coronation my cashflow during the summer months. My recollection, Stakes, I sat up and took notice. perhaps unreliable, is that there were four runners; in those The Mastercraftsman filly duly produced what, for me, days, the placed horses were unsaddled at Hamilton in an was the performance of the week (how good was Threading’s enclosure directly outside the weighing room, and, leaning performance in following her home?), and in post-race against the rail, I was able to hear the jockey of the fourth- interviews Jessie Harrington duly confirmed the importance placed horse, who I think was called Thorganby, explain to of the firm ground conditions to her filly’s performance. connections that the There is a limit, horse would be a however, to the completely different value of knowing prospect on firm In 2018, surely it is time to that ground ground. conditions are He was right. bring the benefit of new crucial. In Straight That summer, with Talking this month, ground conditions technologies into the sport? Mark talks about the often in his favour, subjectivity of the Thorganby won handicap system. several times, and I The same comment think he won at least twice during Wimbledon fortnight. The applies to going descriptions (good to firm has been almost whole affair was my first, invaluable, lesson in how crucial ubiquitous in the past month, and, indeed, we are often told ground conditions are to the outcome of a race. that this is the going description for which clerks are aiming), My second lesson was a costly one. Working as a solicitor and even more so to judgements as to what extent conditions in central Glasgow in the 1990s, my car was broken into. have helped, or hindered, performance. When reading my Racing Post in the garage while the broken It seems to me that the time has come to introduce some window was being replaced, I was asked if I had any tips. As objectivity into these judgements. In 2018, surely it is time to I had a small interest in a horse with Linda Perratt at Cree bring the benefit of new technologies into the sport? There Lodge at Ayr, I was reasonably well-informed about the has to be, for instance, widespread introduction of sectional horses in the yard at the time, and I told the mechanics that, timing throughout the sport in Britain, and, if possible, a new although I didn’t have a tip as such, there was a horse way of measuring the true state of the ground. running at Carlisle that afternoon, advertised at a long price, Yes, the variety of British racecourses might limit how which I felt was likely to get the ground conditions she had useful the study of sectional times might be, but some been waiting for all season. Perhaps she might be backed information is better than none. And as for going each-way. descriptions, an objective measurement, taken in terms of an I imparted the same information to a friend, and client, agreed protocol, would surely provide a bank of objective who called me when I was back in the office. That horse was data which would help in assessing the true worth of a Leading Princess, and she won that day at odds of 33/1. performance. Needless to say, pressure of work prevented me from getting Perish the thought, it might even help in those out to the bookies in time for the race, but when I got home interminable arguments about which generation was better. It that night there were raucous answerphone messages from would help to know, for example, what times the mechanics and from my friend thanking me for the tip. achieved throughout races and on precisely what type of Rough calculations at the time suggested over £3,000 had ground. been won....not by Muggins here, of course! Royal Ascot would doubtless be the perfect meeting at My third ground-related story had a happier outcome for which to explore all the options. And while it was interesting me. In Paris for Arc weekend in 1993, the soggy conditions to hear James Doyle suggest that it was beneficial for Main made me scour my copy of Paris Turf for a horse with decent Edition to race on ground upon which the Royal Procession form on the soft. I Urban Sea, and the rest is history – had made an impression, wouldn’t it be lovely to know if he a 37/1 winner. Do yourself a favour; look up that year’s Arc was correct? 27